GRAND RAPIDS, MI – It still could be a crime to possess more than 2.5 ounces of marijuana in Grand Rapids even if implementation of a voter-approved city charter amendment proceeds.

City Manager Greg Sundstrom will instruct Grand Rapids police to refer cases involving that much marijuana to Kent County for prosecution of state law, according to an affidavit filed in Kent County Circuit Court. Grand Rapids police also will refer to the county prosecutor cases involving manufacture of marijuana, possession with intent to deliver and any possession of marijuana while committing another "state law prosecutable offense" such as armed robbery or felony drunk driving.

Also, for marijuana violations by anyone with four prior convictions involving controlled substances, the city attorney will decide whether to issue a civil infraction ticket or refer the case to the county prosecutor.

“The real question is how do we best apply the city charter amendment,” City Attorney Catherine Mish said. “This was the city administrator’s best first attempt for outlining procedures from the police department.

“If we could begin that process (of implementation), we could gain experience over time and adjust the protocols as necessary.”

Grand Rapids voters in November approved a city charter amendment that decriminalizes marijuana, making it a civil infraction instead of a misdemeanor crime. But implementation is on hold pending a lawsuit filed by Kent County Prosecutor Bill Forsyth.

A hearing before Kent Circuit Judge Paul Sullivan is scheduled Jan. 9. Mish argues in a brief to the court that decriminalization should proceed while the lawsuit plays out. She claims that “a preliminary injunction will impede this court’s ability to fully analyze whether the city charter amendment, as implemented, truly impedes the (prosecutor's) duties or violates state law." She also suggests that an injunction “would undermine voter confidence in the processes by which citizens exercise the fundamental democratic right to vote.”

The city charter amendment does not specify any amount of marijuana subject to civil infraction. Mish said Grand Rapids plans a 2.5-ounce threshold because that’s the maximum amount that may be possessed by someone with a medical marijuana card, “so the police officers have one quantity limit to deal with.”

DecriminalizeGR, the group that collected enough signatures to put the charter amendment on the ballot, is not taking a position on the city’s implementation guidelines at this time, a spokesman said.

“We are focused on ensuring that this policy can even be implemented and that the lawsuit is resolved,” Tyler Nickerson said. “We have a good working relationship with the city manager and we expect that to continue.”

Kent County Undersheriff Jon Hess in a live chat here on Thursday, Jan. 3, said sheriff's deputies will not actively pursue marijuana offenders in Grand Rapids. But "as we confront law violations we will charge under state law as we have always done," he said.